Ohme ePod vs Andersen Quartz

£173 apart, and almost nothing in common

These two chargers occupy the same price neighbourhood but different philosophies entirely. The Ohme ePod costs £499, weighs 1.48 kg, and runs the same tariff-optimisation software as its bigger sibling. The Andersen Quartz costs £672, comes in eleven finishes, and carries a seven-year warranty. One is a tiny computer that happens to charge your car. The other is a piece of exterior design that happens to be smart enough.

• Ohme ePod — £499, untethered, OZEV-approved, best-in-class tariff integration, three-year warranty. You buy the cable separately.
• Andersen Quartz — £672, tethered or untethered, IP65, seven-year warranty, eleven colours. OZEV approval is not confirmed — the grant is not guaranteed.

The ePod's tariff advantage is real

Both chargers now support Intelligent Octopus Go, so on that specific tariff the gap narrows. But the Ohme ePod also has direct API links to Octopus Agile and British Gas EV Power, plus a price-cap feature that lets you set a ceiling in pence per kWh and refuse to charge above it. On Agile — where rates shift every thirty minutes — the ePod chases the cheapest slots automatically. The Quartz cannot do this. It schedules; it does not optimise half-hourly.

If you are on a fixed off-peak tariff like Octopus Go or EDF GoElectric, the difference is academic: both chargers can schedule a block and stick to it. The ePod's edge only matters when your tariff moves. But variable tariffs are where the real savings live — Agile's overnight rates regularly dip below 5p/kWh — and the ePod is built for exactly that world.

The Quartz also integrates with OVO Charge Anytime at 14p/kWh, which is fine but not cheap. The ePod's broader tariff compatibility gives you more room to switch suppliers without losing smart charging.

The cable question and the true cost gap

The ePod ships without a Type 2 cable. A decent 5-metre cable runs £100–£150; a longer one, closer to £200. That narrows the £173 headline gap to somewhere between £0 and £73, depending on what you buy. Factor in the OZEV grant and the arithmetic tilts hard: the ePod is OZEV-approved, so eligible renters and flat owners can claim the £500, which covers the £499 unit outright and contributes to install costs. The Quartz's OZEV status is not confirmed — buyers cannot rely on the grant being available.

Even without the grant, the ePod plus cable is likely cheaper than the Quartz. With it, the gap is decisive.

Warranty and weatherproofing favour the Quartz

Seven years against three. That is the Quartz's strongest card, and it is not trivial. The ePod is a small, exposed electronics unit rated IP54 — adequate for a sheltered wall, less convincing on an exposed gable end. The Quartz is IP65, rated to -25°C, and built to sit on a front elevation without complaint. If your charger position is exposed to weather and you want something that will last a decade without fuss, the Quartz's warranty and build rating matter.

The Quartz's finishes also matter in a way that is hard to quantify until you see a charger on your house every morning. Eleven standard colours, plus Accoya wood and carbon inserts. The ePod is a white pod the size of a paperback. If your charging point is on a prominent wall — visible from the street, adjacent to the front door — the Quartz looks like it belongs there. The ePod looks like it was bolted on as an afterthought, because it was designed to be invisible, not beautiful.

For buyers torn between the Quartz and its more expensive sibling, the Andersen A3 vs Quartz comparison covers the hidden-cable question in detail.

Connectivity: a quiet but important split

The ePod uses a built-in 3G/4G SIM — no Wi-Fi at all. The Quartz uses Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz with Bluetooth for setup. Neither approach is universally better. If your router is at the back of the house and the charger is on the front wall, the ePod's cellular connection will likely be more reliable. If your mobile signal is weak but Wi-Fi reaches the drive, the Quartz wins. Check both before ordering. A smart charger that cannot reach the internet is just an expensive plug.

Which to buy

Buy the Ohme ePod if:

• You want half-hourly tariff optimisation on Agile or similar variable rates
• You are OZEV-eligible and want the £500 grant to cover the unit price
• You prefer untethered charging and want the cable in the boot for destination use

Buy the Andersen Quartz if:

• Your charger sits on a prominent, exposed wall and appearance matters
• A seven-year warranty is more important to you than tariff savings
• You want a tethered option with up to 8.5 metres of cable and IP65 weatherproofing

For most buyers — especially those on a variable tariff or eligible for the grant — the ePod is the smarter spend. It costs less, saves more on electricity, and does the one thing a smart charger should do better than almost anything else on the market. The Quartz is the right choice for a smaller group: people who want their charger to look like it was designed by an architect and are happy to pay £173 for the privilege. If you want the ePod's brain with a built-in cable and a display, the Ohme Home Pro at £539 sits neatly between the two.